Must Be The Heat
by HeiLong
Summary: Does she like him? She barely knows him! It must probably be the summer heat getting to her. Very light KakaKure OOC?,implied NaruHina. [ADDITIONAL CHAPTER ADDED]
1. Default Chapter

A/N: To everyone who reviewed my first two fics, thank you so much! I really appreciate your reviews. It's great to see you guys enjoyed it. Well, here's another one. Can't promise this one to be as good though.

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto, the characters in it, or anything else. I do not hold anything against smokers and I do not mean to offend any.

_'thoughts'_

"conversation"

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**Must Be The Heat**

"YAAHH!" The bellowing chakra-charged battle cry resounded in the large forest of Konoha, which was immediately followed by loud crash. A large tree felled by no other than Hyuuga Hinata caused the sound. That's right, the very same Hinata, the timid, shy Heiress of the powerful and prestigious Hyuuga clan.

Ever since the Chuunin exams, Hinata had never trained so hard before. She resolved never again will she be seen as weak and looked down on. Her teammates are beginning to see their demure Hinata turn into Hyuuga Neji in front of them, practicing harder than her teammates.

Kurenai sat up high on a tree branch supervising their training. She was impressed by her student's progress and resolve to train and improve. Shino and Kiba were training on their own as well nearby, but paid little heed to Hinata's abuse on the trees, used to this for weeks now.

Kurenai sat back and took a deep breath. The sun was unrelenting, raising the temperature even when under the refuge of the shade of the trees. The forest was quiet, save for the sounds of her team training and the cicadas buzzing out 'summer'.

Forgetting her students for awhile, she escaped the heat by plunging into the pool that is her mind, pondering and thinking about various thoughts all at once.

Her first thought was about her students. They were all dear to her. All were hardworking and good ninjas. She was pleased at Hinata's recent and strong comeback after recovering from the thrashing her brutal cousin had given her. Hinata wanted to be strong like her crush Naruto (except for the dense Naruto, her students and the other ninjas knew it to be a fact already).

Naruto...he is strong indeed. Nobody would have thought that he would make it this far, let alone beat Kiba and much to everyone's surprise, Neji, last year's "number one rookie", in the fight. He was an outcast, ostracized because of the demon inside him. The older villagers remember it all too well. Their beloved Hokage died sealing the demon inside Naruto.

Beloved...

She also thought of Asuma. She liked the man and all, but she really hated his bad habit. Yep, it's Asuma's smoking. The man smelled of tar and nicotine. Ugh, disgusting! It was a shame, really. He was a strong guy, handsome and rugged looking. He can kick everyone's ass in a fight. She could have given her heart to him, but she just hated his nasty habit of smoking. She can't live with a chain smoker for the rest of her life! She'd die early. Why can't he be like Kakashi? He's funny, strong, a good fighter, a good guy overall... 

Her thoughts drifted to Kakashi himself, his strong, hard muscles that she wanted to caress, his funny hair she wanted to stroke, his strong arms that could surely make her melt if he held her close and most of all, his mysterious face she wanted to see. What lies beneath his mask? Disfigurement? A chiseled, handsome face? She wanted to know-

Kurenai kicked herself, startled by her own thoughts. Why was she thinking about Kakashi? There is no plausible reason at all. The thought just came out of nowhere...

Her heart was beating hard and her face, a blush. Where the hell did those thoughts come from? She didn't think much of him normally. There was only silent respect and admiration for him...for his strength, how he trained and handled his students well, his impressive skills, especially the Sharingan...that was all there is. No love or infatuation whatsoever.

'_So why are you thinking about him then?_'

Shut up, she rebuffed. But her conscience wouldn't give up so easily.

'_Come now...you like him...love maybe? he's suitable dating/marriage material. His only flaw is his knack for being late...it's kinda cute actually..._'

Kurenai then did her best to smother and drown out her irritating conscience. It took a while, but she emerged victorious.

Really now, she hardly knows a damn thing about him. How could she have such thoughts about him? Puhleeeze, as if it'd work out between them. Dismissing the inappropriate thoughts as the work of the summer heat, she let out a chuckle at the things heat can do to one's thinking.

"What are you laughing about?" a clearly male voice suddenly interrupting her reverie and startling her. In her surprise, she gave a yelp and jumped, losing her balance and falling from the tree branch. Before she could even emit another cry, an arm, which shared the same owner as the voice, shot out and caught her arm firmly. She was pulled up with ease back on the branch with nary a grunt from her savior. Sill giddy with the sudden adrenaline rush, she turned to see Kakashi, his exposed eye crinkled up in amusement and an arm, the same arm he used to save her, raised in greeting. "Yo."

"Kakashi! What are you doing here?" she half-asked, half-yelled, mad at him for catching her laughing at nothing and for being the responsible one who scared her and made her fall, and happy at the same time to see him and for saving her.

"My team's done training...so I thought I'd come here and hang with you..." came the reply, Kakashi's sleepy eye winking at her. Needless to say, it evoked surprise at his sudden behavior. She blushed and smiled at him while wondering why he wanted to stay with her. Meanwhile, her persistent conscience popped up again. 

'_Yes! Kakashi beside me- well, you can say 'us' ._'

Unconsciously, Kurenai yelled, "JUST SHUT UP!" earning a bewildered look from her fellow Jounin sitting beside her. Kurenai turned a bright vermilion as she covered her mouth with both hands.

Kakashi's POV

Hoo boy, she's acting up again...(A/N: "again"!) I sure hope she's comfortable with me around...okay, gotta play this cool. Man, she's hot! I just wanna spend some time with her, since I don't talk to her often. I even dismissed the guys early...whoa, look at all these fallen trees. Did Hinata do that? It's good to see her training hard to be strong. Wait, dammit, I'm rambling! Hmm...she sure smells good today. Gotta get closer. Don't kill me, Asuma. She doesn't really like you anyway! Blame it on your smokes!

Kakashi shifted closer to Kurenai as he tried to start a conversation with the gorgeous Jounin. The conversation got pretty well under way, although the atmosphere was tense.

Kurenai's POV

He's talking to me! This is great! Ok, ok! So I _do_ like him! Despite the fact that I haven't really seen his face before, I like him.

The conversation drifted and then stopped abruptly. As if silenced by a power from above, the two stopped talking, dead quiet while staring at one another. Kakashi stared at her. At her alluring crimson eyes, her soft, kissable lips, her beautiful white skin, her ebony hair covering her shoulders like a radiant glory. Kurenai gazed at Kakashi's angled face. His eye, now wider, penetrated into her mind, calling to her, seducing her...tempting her. They drew nearer...Kakashi started to peel off his mask, Kurenai pursing her lips ever so slightly for the impending kiss. Their eyes closed simultaneously and both waited for the meeting of their souls wi-

"OI, KAKASHI-SENSEI!"

The two pulled away at the same time, blushing and looking away, Kakashi pulling his mask back on and Kurenai covering her crimson cheeks with her hands. They looked around for the owner of the voice that interrupted them. Whoever it is, he's going to pay dearly!

Their irate glance fell on a blonde haired boy who was now grinning from ear to ear, blissfully ignorant of the fact that he had sealed fate when he yelled at them and interrupted the intimate moment of the odd couple.

"Tsk tsk! Kissing in broad daylight! Get a room , you two! As if anyone would like to see you two make out! Nyahahahaha!"

"Naruto..." they both growled. Kakashi then turned to his crush and, his eye smiling, said "Ja ne. I'll see ya." Then whispering closer, whispered "Sorry about this...I guess I'll have to get going." And with that, he hopped off the branch, gave her a farewell salute with two fingers to his brow, and carried off Naruto over his shoulder, ignoring his yells and protests about him being too old for that, and that he came to give something to Hinata. Obviously, that was a slip of the tongue, since he quickly shut up after that and turned beet red, silently enduring his embarrassing position. Hinata on the other hand, overheard the boy's yells and turned into an equal shade of red, her Byakkugan deactivating involuntarily as she turned shy and timid once again.

Kurenai stared at Kakashi's back as he carried Naruto off; she felt her heart flutter as she did. It is just infatuation? Her head told her that it is, since they only knew each other as colleagues, fellow ninja. Nothing more. They did not even know anything personal about each other. She then brushed it off, forcing herself to forget everything. But her heart asked her something she couldn't answer.

'_Then what was that that happened just now?_'

Her mind rebutted with it being just the heat and excitement. She then chose to believe that. However, her memory kept playing that moment when they were about to kiss over and over.

She heaved a heavy sigh and turned her head to the sky, at the infinite blue madness, trying to sort out her thoughts in vain. She shook her head and concentrated on her students' training instead.

Unbeknownst to her, a certain ninja stood in the shadows, admiring her, loving her.

If only she knew.

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A/N: Sorry if this sucked compared to my other fics. I'm not sure if it's the odd pairing (I thought cool and hot goes together. I guess it's also the couple that plays an important factor), fatigue, or the light fic (I'm used to writing heavy stuff like angst or sap). This is a one-shot, but I left space to throw in a few more chapters. Let the people decide... 


	2. BDay gift

A/N: Wow, didn't expect to add another chapter in one of my earlier fics. I (half-heartedly) intended to add a chapter or two to this fic after my priority fics (e.g. sequel for Overcast and updating Sacrifice), but there's this girl who kept bugging me about updating this one, _every single time we see each other_. Today (or tomorrow, depending on where you live) is going to be her birthday, so updating would be a great (and cheap! Hey c'mon, I'm Chinese. I have an _excuse_ to be cheap!) gift for her.

**Chapter dedicated to Esther. Happy birthday and God bless you! Pinagpuyatan ko 'to, ah!**

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"Bartender, hit me again!" The inebriated Jounin mumbled and slurred to the barkeep. He didn't expect the slightly disgruntled man to take his words a bit too literally.

The bartender reached below the counter and swung a tetsubo, a very heavy iron cudgel, at his face. Any self-respecting ninja, let alone a Jounin, should be able to detect, evade, and counterattack any kind of assault in one smooth motion. In most cases, however, alcohol can greatly decrease one's depth perception and judgment. In alcohol-induced slow-motion vision, the studded metal weapon connected with his cheekbones and sent him flying off his bar stool, and right onto the street.

He landed with a heavy thud on the dirt. His eyes saw stars and his face felt numb while on fire at the same time.

"Ow."

Glancing up, he saw the bartender with a violently twitching eye. He held out a long piece of paper that reached the ground.

"Hit you? Damn right I'm going to hit you! _**This** is your tab!_ If you don't pay me back, then don't expect to be served. Matter of fact, you can pretty much expect the same treatment from now on for non-paying customers!" he yelled in his face, spittle flying, and headed back into the bar and then slammed the door.

The Jounin looked back up at the dark sky and sighed in resignation. They used to have more respect for ninjas back in the old days. Alright, so he was kicked out of a bar for the third time this week. Typical. Was it his fault that a certain red eyed kunoichi held such a vice grip on his heart? Was it his fault that she was out of his league? Was it his fault that the famous and powerful "copy-ninja" Hatake Kakashi was going after her? And was it his fault that he was destroying his health and life by drinking instead of being proactive and actually doing something about the situation?

He sat up and tenderly prodded at his sore cheek. That's going to be a bitch in the morning, along with a hangover. That day in the forest was quite unforgettable. After having his heart dashed into a million pieces right there, he ran to the nearest bar and emptied two jars of Awamori into his mouth. A certain Hyuuga Neji was there (what the hell was a thirteen year old tightass doing in a bar at daytime, when he, a well known training junkie, should be kicking the crap out of Lee and Tenten, aka training, is beyond him) and mocked him, saying that he was pathetic for lacking the courage to court her and for getting drunk over such a paltry matter. Imagine that, a **_KID_**, lecturing a fully mature adult, a ninja who is at least a decade his senior and outranks him, who lives in his own apartment and gets laid on a regular basis, on how to live his bloody life! He would have easily beaten that arrogant, condescending ass to a bloody pulp, but he was too drunk to do anything about it.

…could that _kid_ be right?

The sound of giggling made him turn his head. The melodious voice only belonged to one woman in the Leaf. The scene that greeted his eyes made him wish that he were smashed across the head again by that psycho bartender instead. Mere meters from him, was the love of his life, Yuuhi Kurenai, walking hand in hand with that damned porn addict, Kakashi!

His fists tightened. He was NOT going to relive this again. He stood and tried to approach her, to pour out the very feelings that were eating him up from the inside for days, but his feet refused to move. What if his strongly alcoholic breath knocks her out? What if he trips in front of her? What if she laughs right in his face? What if she gets pissed and puts him in a looping, endless genjutsu? Heck, what if she French-kisses Kakashi right in front of him, out of spite?

He thought of going back to his home and just cry himself to sleep, but a familiar pair of white eyes met his. The "number one rookie" was discreetly standing in a dark corner of the street and saw the whole thing. Oh, he probably got a laugh out of the bartender kicking him out, that jackass. His lips were twisted in a cruel smirk, a haughty challenge in his cold eyes. He could almost hear his voice, '_Face it, you spineless coward. You can never get the girl. You just go back home, hide under the covers and drink yourself to death. Ooh, maybe mommy will come by and make it all better.' _The elder ninja's eyes narrowed. How dare he! He'll show that- that kid! Little genin punk…

Steeling himself and adjusting his dark glasses, Ebisu, the much sought after tutor of future Hokages, strode forth to turn his dreams into a reality.

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Finally, he was able to send his annoying team home and secure a date with the hottest of the hottest (1) kunoichi, his one and only Kurenai. Sure, his team was great and all, with Naruto and Sasuke improving by leaps and bounds day by day, but sometimes their bickering just gets on his nerves, especially when he hears Sakura blindly worshipping the Uchiha.

He could feel Kurenai's slender, somewhat calloused hands, in his, and smiled. Man, this is _way_ better than his Icha Icha books! Really, finding a smart, capable woman isn't as easy as it sounds. There's almost always something wrong about the women that Kakashi meets. If she would just say the word, he'd burn all his porn novels and mags in a heartbeat. Anything for her.

His eye caught movement to their right. It was that pompous "future Hokage tutor", Ebisu, approaching. He looked like he was going to start something. It was likely, judging from the look in his eye, and the stench in his breath. If someone lit a match, his breath might catch fire.

His date waved at him and greeted him a nice evening. Kakashi himself nodded just to be polite. Ebisu blushed (no, not at Kakashi, sickos), but remained silent and stood there, staring at _his_ date. Kakashi raised an eyebrow. Why won't he get his _own_ date, and have a staring contest with _her_? Kurenai looked puzzled and concerned at his odd behavior. "Ebisu-san, are you alrigh- ?"

"I LOVE YOU, KURENAI-SAMA!" the one of geeky fashion taste blurted out rather loudly, thanks to the high content of alcohol remaining in his bloodstream. The kunoichi was shocked, as was her date, and both stood staring at Ebisu for a few long seconds. Kakashi was the first to break the silence.

"Ok, time to go!" Kakashi exclaimed, pulling Kurenai along, when Ebisu caught her other hand.

"Wait! I just exposed my deepest, most guarded, and dearest secret to you. Aren't you going to say something?" Ebisu cried. Kurenai blushed.

"I…uh," she stammered, struggling for the right words. Kakashi decided to help out.

"Look, pal. In case you haven't noticed, she's with me. And I'm sure everyone knows that it's rude to steal someone's date now, wouldn't you?" he reasoned, his voice holding that trademark carefree tone. Ebisu wasn't happy to be interrupted or to be talked to in such a relaxed manner.

"How _dare_ you interrupt my conversation with the lovely Kurenai! For this insult, you shall pay!" he roared. One thing went through both ninja's minds that very moment, '_Man, doesn't this guy know who I am?'_

Before a handseal was formed or a kunai was drawn, however, the subject of their squabble, the "lovely Kurenai", put herself in between them, effectively stopping the fight before it even began. She wasn't amused.

"That's enough, you two! I can't believe you two! Do you think I'm nothing but a prize, a trophy, to fight over? I'm a human being too! I am a woman who is fully capable of thinking for herself and making her own decisions! Kakashi, I'm so disappointed in you! You're just like the others!" she exclaimed and wrung her hand from his and marched off.

Ebisu fell to his knees, shocked that the woman he loved in the shadows for so long, would disregard him like that. She didn't even say his name! No…it's over now. All the time spent pining for her in the darkness and silence of the night… Oh, such pain. Such misery wrought upon his wretched soul! The tears came slowly. Like the increasing tide, his tears soon became a torrent. Hot angry tears came out. All the ugly pain inside, the pain of the rejections he had taken over the years, forced out of him. He cried his anguish at the stars above, as distant as his dreams were from him.

"Fool," Neji snickered, and went on his merry, fatalistic way. The boy just watched a live soap opera, and it amused him to no end. A sudden thought struck him like lightning. The Main House must be responsible for the stupidity of this Jounin.

Kakashi stared at her retreating back for a few seconds, at the wailing Ebisu rocking himself on the street, and at Neji, who was going the opposite way; his brain was trying to process the scenes that transpired the last few minutes (2). _Am I in the twilight zone?_ After a full minute of convincing himself that he wasn't drunk, doing drugs, or in dreamland, Kakashi did what his brain (hey, 27 years of experience as a ninja couldn't be wrong) deemed an appropriate course of action to take should such an occurrence happen: he took an orange colored book out of his breast pocket, started reading, and headed home.

_I sure hope I haven't run out of lube yet._

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(1) This is highly debatable, and might set off a flame war. Let me remind you that this is just a fic; don't take this stuff seriously, guys! Seriously.

(2) This is just a bit strange, you know? You're taking your date out to dinner; some guy you know to be a schmuck comes out of nowhere and proclaims his love for her. You tell him to back off, and then your date goes ballistic all of a sudden, ranting about women's rights and male chauvinist pigs. No, I'm not attacking feminists (and I'm not in the mood to debate with one). I just think an outburst like that is pretty random (and I've actually seen such outbursts occur).

A/N: Okay, some of you might be thinking, "Dude, what the hell were you smoking? EBISU? And what's with Neji's random appearances? And what kind of an ending was that?" Well, I'm tired and don't feel like explaining myself. Oh yeah, I also don't give a damn about your worthless opinions. I wrote this for someone, and that someone is not you. I will offer excuses for my insane behavior in this fic with an already insane pairing when a) the person for whom I have written this fic for (see top of page) asked for one, and b) I feel like I have excessive energy and willing to kill off a few irretrievable minutes of my time and somehow compelled to edit and add a few words to the author's note, which isn't even the fic itself, and repost it all over again. Ooh, my sarcastic side showing eh? I decided to be a bit more like myself here (or from now on, whichever I feel like). Well, have a nice day you guys! Don't read yaoi! (Hey, maybe I should end all my author's notes with those two sentences from now on. What'cha think? Oh yeah, I don't care…)


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